Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A uniform statute supplying jurisdictional standards for adoption proceedings. States that adopt it use its residency and filing rules to determine which court may hear an adoption petition.
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Urban Utley files an adoption petition in County N after his employer opens an office there. He spends months at sea and keeps no permanent home in the county. The court dismisses the petition because UAA-based residency rules require a fixed personal dwelling rather than a workplace connection.
Ulysses Ulrich stores his food-truck equipment in County B and files an adoption petition there. He lives full-time in an RV that rarely parks in the county and the child attends school elsewhere. The court rejects jurisdiction under UAA standards because commercial storage alone does not satisfy the personal-residency requirement.
Most states have not enacted the UAA. The UCCJEA excludes adoption, leaving a jurisdictional gap. The UAA supplies residency rules that states may adopt to decide which county court may hear a petition.
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No. Courts applying UAA-derived statutes require a petitioner to maintain a personal residence in the filing county. A workplace or business asset location alone does not meet the standard.
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States either add adoption to their UCCJEA coverage or enact the UAA's jurisdictional provisions. Both approaches impose a county-residency requirement on the petitioner.
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